Former Cowboys receiver Sam Hurd close to pleading guilty in federal case

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DALLAS
(AP) — Former NFL wide receiver Sam Hurd is moving closer to a deal to
plead guilty in the federal drug-distribution case against him, his
attorney said Tuesday.

Prosecutors filed documents Tuesday that
said Hurd would plead guilty to one charge of conspiracy to possess with
intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine. The charge carries
a recommended sentence of 10 years in prison to life.

But
attorney Jay Ethington told The Associated Press that the documents were
posted prematurely. Ethington said he and prosecutors were still
negotiating the terms of any plea agreement — namely which allegations
Hurd would acknowledge in an eventual plea.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Dallas did not immediately return an email message.

Hurd, 27, played for the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys. He was arrested in December after allegedly accepting cocaine from an undercover agent at a suburban Chicago steakhouse.

According
to court documents, Hurd took 1 kilogram — about 2 pounds — of cocaine
and told the officer he wanted to eventually buy five to 10 kilograms of
cocaine and 1,000 pounds of marijuana per week to distribute in the
Chicago area.

Hurd was cut by the Bears after his arrest. He had
been free on bail, which was revoked last month when he twice tested
positive for marijuana and was accused of trying to buy more drugs
earlier this year.

Ethington said he remained concerned about a
"factual resume" accompanying a plea agreement that sets out facts of
the crime agreed to by both Hurd and prosecutors.

Hurd was not "a big-time captain of some drug conspiracy," Ethington said.

"This whole adventure was really somebody else's, and Hurd got swept up into it in a naive way," Ethington said.

Hurd's trial is currently scheduled for Oct. 9.

A
co-defendant, Toby Lujan, has already pleaded guilty to a cocaine
possession charge. Lujan signed paperwork saying he told an informant
for law enforcement about a potential drug buyer named "Sam" who played
for the Chicago Bears.